Free Koala Printable for Valentine’s Day

Here is a free koala printable for Valentine’s Day!

free koala art

The animals of Australia have been on all of our minds so I couldn’t resist featuring sweet koala bears on my Valentine’s Day printables. I hope you like them! The art is saved as 6″x4″ jpegs and can easily be printed on photo sized paper.

Feel free to download and print this free koala printable. Also, please consider making a donation to one of the many organizations that is helping the animals affected by the bushfire in Australia. This CNN article gives more information on How to Help Australia Bushfire Victims. (more…)

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Pumpkin Spice Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin Spice Pumpkin Seeds – The perfect crunchy addition to your holiday cheese platter. Here’s how to make them!PumpkinSpicePumpkinSeeds

Pumpkin Spice Pumpkin Seeds are a delicious sweet twist on the classic Roasted Pumpkin Seeds recipe. As an added bonus, they make your house smell like Pumpkin Spice while they roast in the oven.

PumpkinSpicePumpkinSeeds

If you are making pumpkin pie for the holidays or a delicious Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe, don’t toss those pumpkin guts. Instead, clean your pumpkin seeds and make yummy Roasted Pumpkin Seeds. And at the end of this post, find four beautiful cheese plates that we sourced for your holiday entertaining, each under $20.

Here’s How to make Pumpkin Spice Pumpkin Seeds!

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Shepherd’s Pie Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe

Shepherd’s Pie Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe – The ultimate fall comfort food.Shepherd's Pie Stuffed Pumpkin

A few weeks ago my friend Mena mentioned making a Shepherd’s Pie Stuffed Pumpkin and I couldn’t get it out of my mind. It just sounded like the ultimate fall comfort food. I asked her for the details and like most of the Italian girls in my life, she gave me very vague instruction, as the very best cooks usually do. I was on my own to figure out the – down to the details – directions. Lucky for all of us, I nailed it you guys and I’m ready to share my recipe! Ha! This Shepherd’s Pie Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe makes a perfect cozy Sunday dinner, or festive holiday entrée for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Shepherd's Pie Stuffed Pumpkin

The elements of your Shepherd’s Pie can be made in about 30 minutes. Therefore allowing you to do other things while baking your beautiful Shepherd’s Pie Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe. Your house will be filled with a brilliant aroma of savory Shepherd’s Pie and sweet  baked pumpkin and apples.

Shepherd's Pie Stuffed Pumpkin

Read on if you are ready to make a Shepherd’s Pie Stuffed Pumpkin. Be warned that you will be asked to make this delicious comfort food again! Are you looking for more ways to stuff a pumpkin? Watch our How to Make a Savory Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe Video for another delicious stuffed pumpkin recipe as well as tips on how to prepare your pumpkin for baking. (more…)

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Hiking the Greek Islands – A 9-night/10-day Greece Itinerary

Hiking the Greek Islands – A 9-night/10-day Greece Itinerary!! Im excited to FINALLY fill you in on this trip of a lifetime that I took in September.       

Day 1-3 Athens

Greece has been my #1 dream destination since Jaime and I conquered Italy 6 years ago, so when my mother-in-law suggested a trip, I said “Ne Parakolo,” or, “yes please” and the trip planning was set in motion. My mother-in-law has been traveling with REI adventures for years and I’ve always been intrigued by her trips but also a little terrified by the whole “adventures” component. I’m about a 5 on the 1-10 adventure travel scale. Alas, an REI hiking trip was my best shot at getting to Greece so we signed up and I started researching camel packs and putting off training immediately. I’ll get into that later, I’m sure you are eager to hear about Hiking the Greek Islands and my A 9-night/10-day Greece Itinerary.

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I opened a shop! Come and visit.

Hey! It’s been a minute. I’ve been working on a new project that I’m so excited to tell you about: My new shop, Greenwood.

Image of the interior of greenwood shop in los angeles CA

Pop in to our potting bar in Valley Village for a fun activity: Choose your favorite pot, then pick out a new plant baby. We’ll help you mix the perfect soil and teach you how to help your plant live happily ever after. Stop by on your own, with a group of friends, or bring the kiddos.

Along with a gorgeous green selection of plants, we’ve got artisan pottery and a well curated collection of gifts, clothing, and apothecary products. It’s basically a long lazy Sunday afternoon in shop form.

If you’re in the LA area, come by and say hi! Bring your kids! Check it out online here: Greenwood Shop.

Can’t wait to see you there!

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Framed Rug as Wall Art

A framed rug isn’t something you see often. Placing a rug on the wall turns it into an art installation with big impact in a small room.
Image of a framed rug I once showed you how to hang a rug on your wall. That was a quick and simple solution to getting this gorgeous camel hair rug I purchased on our trip to Jordan up as wall art, but since we moved into our new home, this rug was gently folded and stored in a cabinet along with a gorgeous runner we also bought in Jordan.

Well, the other day I went into the cabinet to get the rugs out, and found the runner with a giant hole in it, covered in larvae – it had been eaten! It was devastating. Luckily this little guy had been spared. I decided I wanted to protect this one for the long term – a framed rug it would become. I sent it out to Framebridge, and I think they did a great job. The key is to ask for your rug to be float mounted. A vintage rug isn’t usually perfectly rectangular, so a float mount allows the edges and the charm of the rug’s shape to shine.

Here’s a few other examples of a framed rug that add texture to blank walls.

Image of Framed Rug from Loomology This gorgeous textile from loomology looks like a 2X3 rug in a perfect pattern.

This framed scarf from SF girl resembles a small runner for your wall. So gorgeous.

Over here, they stretched a persian rug onto a canvas, then float mounted the canvas into a frame.

This framed rug is not float mounted, but the tight profile works with this room.

This mini shag framed rug is the perect abstract impressionist bit of texture in this space.

These maple wood rug hangers from the citizenry are another simple, beautiful alternative to a framed rug.

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Unlimited Squirrels by Mo Willems & Perfect Rock Painting Tutorial

Unlimited Squirrels by Mo Willems & Perfect Rock Painting Tutorial is sponsored by Disney Book Group

I know that so many of you, just like us,  are fans of Mo Willems, from Elephant & Piggie to Pigeon to Nanette, so I’m thrilled to introduce his newest creation. Unlimited Squirrels in I Lost My Tooth! combines a charming new cast of characters with Mo’s signature writing style; a captivating medley of heart, humor, and high energy. This new book also features jokes and scientific facts in addition to a main story. It’s a perfect book for new readers and their caregivers to go back to again and again.

We fell so hard for these funny squirrels that we decided to paint them on a batch of rocks that we are decorating to hide in a neighborhood park. Rather than freehand draw these little guys, we turned to a classic tracing technique to transfer them to stone. I love when I can impress my own kids with a little crafty trick that I know! Now you can too. Here’s how we made our Unlimited Squirrels rocks… (more…)

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How To Limit Electronics for Kids: A Free Printable Chart

How To Limit Electronics for Kids. It’s one of the greatest mysteries of the 21st century. Of course you could always just not introduce them in the first place but that ship sailed for us a few years ago. Since it’s too late to go off the grid, I’m bringing back this How to Limit Screen Time for Kids Summer Electronics Chart that worked great for us last year, a free printable that you too can introduce at home. “You’re Welcome Prudent Children!” HA!

Actually, my kiddos have really embraced this system. They like the independence of keeping track of their own activities as well as the variety of things they are required to do throughout the day.  I’ve even embraced the system for myself, reading and painting when they are doing their activities and doing my computer work when they are engrossed with electronics time.

Look at them drawing!

Look at them baking!

Some other adjustments we have made to our system include rules like “no electronics before 10 in the morning and 2 in the afternoon,” and “a total daily electronics limit of 2 hours.” Even if they don’t want screen time, they still have to complete their checklist for the day.

  

Here’s how it works.

Each week each kid gets a new printout of the sheet, which you can download and print as a PDF or JPEG. It would also be a great idea to laminate the sheet and use a dry erase marker to conserve paper. The lines at the bottom can be used to list chores for the week, positive notes for the kiddo, or rewards and allowance.

Looking for more creative projects to keep kids busy this summer? Visit our Crafting With Kids section for DIY’s like Watercolor Sno-Cone Tutorial, Cactus Pin Cushion Tutorial, and How to Make a Quick Flower Crown

We hope this helps you figure out how to limit electronics for kids at your house this Summer!

How to Limit Screen Time for Kids

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